Gutter screen attachment



United States Patent O This invention relates to gutter screens, andmore particularly to improvements in clip devices for attaching gutterscreens to the margins of gutters.

A main object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved gutterscreen clip for attaching a protective screen to a gutter, the clipbeing simple in construction, being easy to install, and providingreliable securement of a screen to the associated gutter.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved gutterscreen clip which is inexpensive to manufacture, which is durable inconstruction, which is easy to install, and which will not readily shakeloose under vibration effects produced by wind and similar atmosphericdisturbances.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved gutterscreen clip which can be installed with ease and without requiringspecial tools and which is deformable by a simple manual operation intoa position wherein it lockingly engages the margin of an associatedsection of gutter screen and retains said section in its requiredposition in overlying relationship to a gutter.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparentfrom the following description and claims, and from the accompanyingdrawings, wherein:

FIGURE l is a fragmentary perspective view showing an eave portion of aroof provided with a gutter on which is installed a gutter screen whichis held in place by an improved screen clip constructed in accordancewith the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the gutter screen clipemployed in FIGURE 1, shown prior to installation.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged transverse lvertical cross sectional view takensubstantially on the line 3-3 of FIG- URE l.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary transverse cross sectional view, similar toFIGURE 3, showing a modified form of gutter screen clip according to thepresent invention.

FIGURE 5 is a front elevational view of the portion of gutter andassociated screen and clip elements illustrated in FIGURE 4.

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of the gutter screen clip employed inFIGURES 4 and 5, shown prior .to bending into its locking position.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGURES 1 to 3,` 11designates a length of gutter attached to the eave portion 12 of anadjacent roof, the gutter 11 being of conventional construction andincluding a vertical rear wall 13 and an upwardly and outwardly inclinedfront wall 14 .provided at its top end with a rectangular bead 15terminating in an inwardly projecting horizontal flange 16. As shown inFIGURE 3, the top flange 16 has a reversely bent inner edge 17.

Disposed on the gutter 11 is a conventional protective screen or guardsection designated generally at 18 and provided with a wire mesh mainbody 19 having the inner sheet metal margin member 20 and the outersheet metal margin member 21. The member 20 comprises a main U-shapedbody receiving and clamped to the inner longitudinal margin of the wire-mesh section 19, being integrally formed with an outwardly projecting,relatively wide bendable flange 22 adapted to be engaged beneath thelowermost shingles 23 of the adjacent portion of the roof, whereby saidshingles provide downward holding force on the ange 22, whereby toretain the inner 3,297,285 Patented Jan. 10, 1967 ICC marginal portionof the associated screen section 18 in position subjacent the lowermostshingles 23, as shown in FIGURE l. The outer sheet metal margin element21 of the screen section 18 is likewise generally U-shaped in form toreceive and be clampingly locked.to the outer longitudinal margin of thesection of screen 19, the member 21 being integrally formed with arelatively short downwardly and inwardly inclined flange 25 engageablewith the reversely bent inner margin of the gutter ange 16.

In accordance with the present invention, clips, shown at 26 areemployed at spaced locations on the outer longitudinal gutter portion 15to retain the adjacent outer marginal portion 21 of a gutter screensection 18 in overlying relation to the gutter. The clip 26 comprises asheet metal main body 27 which is generally U-shaped and which isadapted to closely receive the top flange 16 of the gutter, said mainbody 27 having a top arm 28 which is integrally formed with an outwardlyprojecting bendable tab 29 adapted to be bent downwardly toward asubstantially right angled depending relationship with respect to theremainder of the main body 27, as shown in FIGURE 3, and to assume aposition closely adjacent to the front wall of the rectangular outerbead ofthe gutter 11. The top arm 28 of the main body 27 is likewiseformed with a pair of bendable upstanding arms 3l), 30 disposedsymmetrically at opposite sides of the tab member 29, each armterminating in a pointed hook portion 31 projecting substantially atright angles to the associated arm 30, the hook portion 31 beinggenerally inwardly concave in shape. The bendable hook portions 31, 31are adapted to be lockingly engaged with the wire mesh 19 of theassociated screen section 18 when the ar-ms 30, 30 are bent horizontallyinwardly to the positions thereof shown in FIGURE 3, namely, topositions closely overlying the top surface of the outer marginal member21 of the screen section. The hook elements 31, 31 lockingly engage withthe longitudinally extending elements of the wire mesh body 19 in themanner illustrated in FIGURE 3 whereby to firmly secure the body 27 tothe gutter screen element 21, so that the outer marginal portion of thescreen section 18 is thereby firmly secured to the top flange 16 of thegutter. Thus, in installing the gutter screen sections, the clip members26 are first engaged on the inwardly projecting ange element 16 of thegutter, the arms 30, 30 being in upstanding positions, as shown inFIGURE 2, and the tab elements 29 being bent down to vertical positionsso as to closely engage the front wall element 15 of the gutter. Bybending the tab elements 29 downwardly the clip elements are secured onthe flange 16.

Thereafter the screen sections are placed over the gutter with theflange portions 22 thereof disposed beneath the lowermost eave 23, asabove described, and with their outerlongitudinal margin elements 21disposed on the top arms 28 of the clips substantially in abutment withthe upstanding arms 30, 30 of each clip. The arms 30, 30 are then bentinwardly to horizontal positions overlying the gutter screen marginmembers 21 and with the pronged hook elements 31, 31 of each cliplockingly engaged with the wire mesh portion of the associated gutterscreen section, as shown in FIGURE 3.

Referring now to FIGURES 4, 5 and 6, the gutter, shown at 11', is ofconventional construction, but somewhat different in design from theconventional gutter 11 illustrated in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3. The gutter 11is provided with the generally cylindrical outer rolled bead 40, and thegutter screen clip required, according to the present invention, iscorrespondingly shaped to receive the top portion of the generallycylindrical bead element 40 of the gutter. Therefore, a typical screenclip, according to the present invention, modified to be inmesh portion19 of a gutter section 18 in the manner illustrated-in FIGURE 4 when thebody element 42 of the clip is bent to a horizontal position, asillustrated. The arcuately curved depending rolled portion 43 of eachclip yis formed with a central aperture 45 adapted to receive a sheetmetal screw 46 engageable in the upper inner portion of the adjacentgutter bead element 40 in the manner illustrated in FIGURE 4, whereby toanchor -clip portionl 43 to bead 40. Thus, in installing lthe gutterscreens, the clip members 41 are rst secured on the gutter bead members40 by means of sheet vmetal screws y46 at spaced locations therealongwith the at body portions 42 of the clips in upstanding, substantiallyvertical positions. The screen sections 18 are then placed over thegutter with the outer marginal portions 21 thereafter which the at bodyportions 42 of the clips are bent inwardly toward substantiallyhorizontal positions and the prongs 44, 44 are lockingly engaged withthe wire mesh portions 19 of the gutter screens, las illustratedinFIGURE4. 1

While certain specific embodiments of improved gutter screen clips `havebeen disclosed in the foregoingdescription, it will be understood thatvarious -modica- -tions within the spirit of the invention may occur tothose -of received on the accurately curved portions 43 of the Vclipsadjacentthe intermediate bend lines-47 of the clips,

skilled in the art. Therefore, it is intended that no limitations beplaced on the invention except as dened by the scope of the appendedclaims.

What is claimed is:

1. A gutter screen clip for use on a gutter having an inwardly-directedlhorizontal top flange, comprising a U- shaped outwardly-facing sheetmetal main body shaped to closely receive the gutter horizontal topflange, a downwardly-bendable outwardly-projecting tab member on the toparm of said U-shaped main body to secure said main body to the ange ofthe'gutter in a position to receive the longitudinal edge of a gutterscreen on said top arm, at least one bendable arm projecting from .thetop arm of said main body deformable to extend over the said gutterscreen longitudinal edge, and a hook-like prong projecting from theouter end portion of said bendable arm and being lockingly-engageablewith the gutter screen.

2. The screen clip of claim 1, and wherein there are two such bendablearms, each located at an end of said top arm.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,867,636 7/1932Tinklepaugh et al. 24--81 2,127,234 8/1938 Reiter 24-81 2,739,0223/.1956 Hinz 24-81 X 2,753,141 7/1956 Weber v. 248-27 2,810,173 10/1957Bearden 24-81 3,028,137 4/1962 Houplain 248-343 CLAUDE A. LE ROY,Primary Examiner.

JOHN PETO, Examiner.

1. A GUTTER SCREEN CLIP FOR USE ON A GUTTER HAVING AN INWARDLY-DIRECTEDHORIZONTAL TOP FLANGE, COMPRISING A USHAPED OUTWARDLY-FACING SHEET METALMAIN BODY SHAPED TO CLOSELY RECEIVE THE GUTTER HORIZONTAL TOP FLANGE, ADOWNWARDLY-BENDABLE OUTWARDLY-PROJECTING TAB MEMBER ON THE TOP ARM OFSAID U-SHAPED MAIN BODY TO SECURE SAID MAIN BODY TO THE FLANGE OF THEGUTTER IN A POSITION TO RECEIVE THE LONGITUDINAL EDGE OF A GUTTER IN APOSITION TO TOP ARM, AT LEAST ONE BENDABLE ARM PROJECTING FROM THE TOPARM OF SAID MAIN BODY DEFORMABLE TO EXTEND OVER THE SAID GUTTER SCREENLONGITUDINAL EDGE, AND A HOOK-LIKE PRONG PROJECTING FROM THE OUTER ENDPORTION OF SAID BENDABLE ARM AND BEING LOCKINGLY-ENGAGEABLE WITH THEGUTTER SCREEN.